Santa Cruz Monastery (Coimbra)
The Santa Cruz Monastery in Coimbra in the district of the same name in the Região Centro in Portugal was founded in the 12th century as the Augustinian Canons of the Canon Regulars of the Holy Cross . In the 16th century, the church and the monastery buildings were rebuilt in the Manueline style and the splendid grave monuments of the first Portuguese king Alfonso I (around 1109–1185) and his son Sancho I (1154–1211) were created. In 1910 the Santa Cruz Monastery was declared a Monumento Nacional .
history
In 1131 Dom Tello, the archdeacon of the Coimbra diocese , founded the Santa Cruz Monastery with other companions. The area outside the city walls was made available to them by King Alfonso I. The community adopted the Rule of St. Augustine and chose Theotonius ( Teotónio ), also the first saint of Portugal, as their prior . The Romanesque predecessor church was built between 1132 and 1228 , of which - like the original monastery buildings - nothing has survived. In the Middle Ages, the Santa Cruz Monastery developed into one of the most prestigious intellectual centers in the kingdom with an extensive library and an important scriptorium . Anthony of Padua (around 1195–1231) , who came from Lisbon , and Luís de Camões (1524 / 25–1579 / 80), one of Portugal's most famous poets, lived here temporarily.
From 1507, King Manuel I (1469–1521) had the monastery, threatened by decay, rebuilt in the style named after him. He commissioned the French sculptor Nicolas de Chantereine (also Nicolau de Chanterene) to redesign the tombs of the kings who were already buried in the old church. From 1533 under Manuel's son Johann III. (1502–1557) laid out a second cloister, the remains of which are preserved in the Jardim da Manga .
church
Portal facade
The portal facade was erected in two construction phases. The two mighty towers were built between 1507 and 1513. The portal was designed by the builder Diego de Castillo and executed by Nicolas de Chantereine between 1522 and 1526. Two angels sit above the arch of the portal, blowing trumpets and holding the coat of arms of the Portuguese kings. Above it are three niches in which King David with his harp, Mary and a prophet stand. To the side you can see the church fathers standing on pedestals and separated by a column, on the left Gregory the Great and Ambrosius of Milan , on the right Jerome and Augustine.
inner space
The church was built on the foundations of the previous Romanesque building. The single-nave nave has chapels on both sides. The broad nave is divided into four bays and is spanned by a net vault with magnificent keystones on which the royal coat of arms and an armillary sphere are depicted. A triumphal arch framed by deaf tape leads to the retracted choir , in which the two royal tombs are housed.
Royal tombs
In 1530 the remains of the two kings, Alfonso I and Sancho I, were transferred to the newly created tombs. The late Gothic tombs that face each other on the long walls of the choir are designed in a similar way. They reach twelve meters high to under the vault and each have up to 50 figures. Embedded in a niche, the dead man lies dressed in his armor on a sarcophagus, above which are apostles, evangelists and other saints under Gothic canopies.
Madonna and angels making music at the tomb of Alfonso I.
Evangelist Luke at the tomb of Alfonso I.
Reclining figure of Sancho I.
pulpit
The pulpit was created by Nicolas de Chantereine in 1522. The pulpit is richly decorated in the Renaissance style with small scenes, putti and grotesques . The church fathers can be seen in four niches . The smaller figures represent sibyls and prophets. At the bottom of the pulpit you can see winged angel heads, sirens and the heads of wild animals.
Pulpit
Saint Jerome
Angel head
Choir stalls
The two-row choir stalls from Manueline times are richly decorated with gold-plated carvings. A master named Machim, who also worked in Braga , is named as its creator .
Choir stalls
Back wall
Carved figure
organ
The organ with the register of a Spanish trumpet is built in as a swallow's nest organ . The organ, created by Heitor Lobo around 1530, was expanded between 1719 and 1724 by the organ builder Manuel Benito Gómez de Herrera, who probably came from the Spanish city of Valladolid .
sacristy
The sacristy was built between 1622 and 1624 under the direction of Pedro Nunes Tinoco. It is spanned by a coffered barrel vault, the walls are clad with azulejos from the first half of the 18th century. Originally important works of the Portuguese school were housed here, such as the painting Pentecostes (Miracle of Pentecost) created by Grão Vasco (1475 / 80–1542 / 43) in 1534/35 , the panel painting Ecce Homo by Cristóvão de Figueiredo († around 1540) or the scene of the Descent from the Cross by André Gonçalves (1685–1754).
Coffered ceiling
Painting Pentecostes by Grão Vasco
Chapter House and Chapel of São Teotónio
A Manueline portal leads from the cloister into the former chapter house , built by the builder Diogo Boitaca (or Boytac), presumably from France, to which the São Teotónio chapel adjoins. The paintings in the chapel depict scenes from the life of King Alfonso I and St. Theotonius, co-founder of the monastery and first prior. On the side walls are the sculptures of the evangelists with their symbols .
Chapter House and Chapel of São Teotónio
Evangelists Matthew and John
Evangelists Luke and Mark
Cloisters
Claustro do Silêncio
The two-story cloister Claustro do Silêncio (Cloister of Silence) was built by Marcos Pires between 1517 and 1522 . The ground floor has pointed arches open with tracery to the courtyard, the korbbögigen three arcades on the upper floor are now glazed. Relief depictions of the Passion of Jesus from the early Renaissance are preserved in the corners . They are made after engravings by Albrecht Dürer and depict the scenes of Christ before Pilate, the carrying of the cross and the burial of Christ, the crucifixion scene is no longer preserved. The fountain in the middle dates from the 17th century.
Claustro do Silêncio
Claustro do Silêncio
Claustro do Silêncio, fountain house
Claustro da Manga
The Claustro da Manga , literally sleeve cloister , was laid out in 1533 as a second cloister by Jean de Rouen . Its name comes from the fact that King John III. should have sketched the design on the sleeve of his garment. From this cloister only the circular buildings in the middle are preserved. Originally they were completely surrounded by moats and only accessible via narrow drawbridges.
literature
- Hans Strelocke: Portugal. From the Algarve to the Minho . 4th edition, DuMont Buchverlag , Cologne 1985, ISBN 3-7701-1369-1 , pp. 263-267.
Web links
- Mosteiro de Santa Cruz SIPA (Portuguese, accessed December 29, 2016)
- Mosteiro de Santa Cruz, compreendendo os túmulos de D. Afonso Henriques e de D. Sancho I DGPC (Portuguese, accessed December 29, 2016)
Individual evidence
- ↑ [1] DGPC (Portuguese, accessed December 2, 2019)
- ↑ [2] SIPA (Portuguese, accessed December 2, 2019)
- ↑ Órgãos Históricos. Mestres Organeiros ACER - Associação Cultural e de Estudos Regionais (Portuguese, accessed December 29, 2016)
- ↑ Manuel Valença: A Arte Organistica em Portugal (1326-1750) . Editorial Franciscana, Braga 1990
- ↑ Antigo claustro da Manga do Mosteiro de Santa Cruz DGPC (Portuguese, accessed December 29, 2016)
Coordinates: 40 ° 12 ′ 39.4 " N , 8 ° 25 ′ 43.9" W.